Jon Betts, CGCS

Experience

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  Foxfire Golf Club

  Apr 2000 - Sept 2006

  Groundskeeper

  This is where my golf course maintenance career started when I was a freshman in high school (April of 2000). I learned and became proficient at all aspects of golf course maintenance from day to day operations to special projects.

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  The Lakes Golf and Country Club

  Apr 2007 - Oct 2007

  Internship

  Before my final year of college I left Foxfire to intern at a different golf course in the private sector just outside of Columbus, Ohio. The Lakes Golf and Country Club was a high end private facility where I learned different techniques of grounds maintenance to store in the experience bank. I continued to take on new duties I had not yet performed and became a sponge for new knowledge in the golf maintenance field.

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  The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C.

  Jun 2008 - Aug 2011

  In 2010 I was promoted to assistant at RCDM. I began assisting and leading line up meetings in the morning with job assignments for the day and monitoring the team's progress. As I began my growth into an assistant I was also involved with project planning and execution. I continued to assist in the watering plan for the day. I began learning and familiarizing myself with the budgetary aspects of golf course maintenance. Team building and leadership skills became a large focus to ensure the maintenance team experienced a good quality of life in the workplace. Show less Following graduation from The Ohio State University I accepted an irrigation position at The Ritz Carlton at Dove Mountain just outside of Tucson, Arizona. RCDM held the WGC Accenture Matchplay from 2009 to 2014. I was apart of the first three WGC events held at RCDM. As an irrigation technician I became proficient in the irrigation department. I was responsible for 9 holes of L-93/LS44 bentgrass greens along with the tees, fairways, and rough containing 419 bermudagrass. My responsibilities also included any pipe repairs, monitoring and recording water usage on a daily basis, and making sure all adjustments were correct throughout the course. RCDM contained all Toro VP satellites and Toro sprinklers of different sorts. For the PGA event I worked closely with the PGA agronomist to ensure moisture levels were within PGA guidelines which had a direct effect on firmness and speed of the greens. Show less

  • Assistant Superintendent

    Sept 2010 - Aug 2011

  • Irrigation Technician

    Jun 2008 - Sept 2010
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  Falcons Fire Golf Club

  Aug 2011 - Nov 2013

  Assistant Superintendent

  I've always had an ambition to work on golf courses in Florida. Once the opportunity arose to transfer laterally within the company to Florida I took advantage of the opportunity. At Falcon's Fire Golf Club (a Marriott managed property at the time) I had full responsibility of team scheduling and execution of daily maintenance and special projects. I oversaw watering needs of the golf course and scheduled daily watering via Toro Site Pro at first, later switched to Toro Lynx. In my final year at Falcon's Fire I headed the transformation of irrigation satellites from outdated Toro 8000s to Toro VP satellites. Other responsibilities I obtained at Falcon's Fire included payroll, assisted with invoicing, ordering of fertilizer, chemical, irrigation parts, and other items needed for the operation. I kept SDS books and fert/chem records up to date. I continued to focus on team building and leadership skills to ensure the team experienced an above par quality of life at work by leading by example and recognition of excellence among associates. Once in the golf populated Orlando area I was able to network and build strong relationships with other ladies and gentlemen in the industry from other superintends/assistants to vendors of different sorts. Show less

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  The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C.

  Nov 2013 - now

  Assistant Superintendent

  After two years at Falcon's Fire a wonderful opportunity came available at the Sarasota area Ritz Carlton Members Club. I was excited to be closer to the gulf coast and gain more experience at a high end facility. In my present position I continue to schedule and execute daily maintenance and special projects, assist with irrigation needs, ordering, ect. I continue to maintain and update SDS books along with fertilizer and chemical records. Over the past several month I have been conducting beta testing for the new Toro geolink gps sprayer. We have become environmental enthusiasts at the RCMC utilizing organic fertlizers, growing wildflower areas for operation pollinator, and joining the Sarasota bee keepers association. We have 3 hives next to one of the wildflower areas. The RCMC is an Audubon certified property. We have a fantastic team at the RCMC and provide a championship caliber golf course for our members and guests. Show less

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  Renaissance Hotels

  Dec 2016 - now

  Superintendent
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  The Vinoy Resort and Golf Club, Autograph Collection

  Oct 2023 - now

  Director of Grounds